The long run: Athletes pile up the miles for Aslinger Memorial scholarships

One way or another, hundreds of local runners took part Friday and Saturday in the seventh annual Howard Aslinger Endurance Run.

Participants completed laps around a roughly 1-mile course around Arena Park in Cape Girardeau between 7 p.m. Friday and 7 p.m. Saturday.

Race director Bryan Kelpe said between the 24-hour race, two 12-hour races, midnight 5k and 1-hour noncompetitive run, close to 250 people ran.

"But the rain did keep a lot of the 5k runners out," Kelpe said.

Along with their annual music festival, the endurance run serves as a fundraiser for the Howard L. Aslinger Memorial Scholarship Foundation that goes to benefit area residents with disabilities.

Participants make their way around the 1 mile loop set up at Arena Park for the 7th Annual Howard Aslinger Endurance Run Saturday, March 19, 2016. The event raises money for the Howard L. Aslinger Memorial Scholarship.Glenn Landberg

Last year, the race raised more than $21,000. Although this year's figures were not available, Kelpe said this year's event was on track to beat that figure.

The collective of runners also beat last year's total mileage of 4,000. Although they fell short of the 6,000-mile goal, it wasn't by much -- together they were sitting around the 5,500-mile mark as the 7 p.m. deadline neared Saturday.

Some runners were more responsible for those miles than others, but many ran more than a marathon.

Local runner Mara Coy, who ran 50 miles, finished Saturday morning after having run all through the night. It marked her first 50-mile performance, having previously been primarily a half-marathon-runner.

"It's an incredible confidence-booster," she said of running, adding when she began running, she could manage only an 18-minute mile.

Participants make their way around the 1 mile loop set up at Arena Park for the 7th Annual Howard Aslinger Endurance Run Saturday, March 19, 2016. The event raises money for the Howard L. Aslinger Memorial Scholarship.Glenn Landberg

"Now I run four days a week," she said, with a running group called the 5:15-ers, so called for the time they convene each morning.

Coy, who works with handicapped and behaviorally challenged children, said the event is doubly meaningful for its fundraising.

She met her 50-mile goal with friend Lindsey Harris of St. Louis, who was in tears of happiness as she recalled crossing the finish line.

"It's taken me three years to hit this goal," she said. "That's what all the tears are about, probably."

She said while it's important to pace oneself and train beforehand, a lot of success in ultra running comes down to grit.

A pair of muddy running shoes rest on a table during the 7th Annual Howard Aslinger Endurance Run Saturday, March 19, 2016.Glenn Landberg

"You just have to keep going," she said. "And have a crew."

The crew was for keeping her caffienated and in good spirits for the nearly 16 hours it took to complete the run.

Both agreed what drew them to running is the friendships with other runners, as well as running's stress-relieving qualities.

But another participant hit the starting line Saturday chasing a different goal: a world record.

John Payne, a wheelchair-bound ultramarathoner from Tennessee, was trying to break the record for miles completed by a wheelchair-runner in a 24-hour period in only 12 hours.

As 7 p.m. neared, it became clear Payne would not take the world record, but was one of only six individuals to complete more than 100 miles.

Another runner, John Cash, is a two-time national champion and former member of the U.S. national 24-hour racing team.

tgraef@semissourian.com

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